Song Yixiao didn't know what her mother was planning, but as an unmarried girl, she couldn't make decisions for herself when going out or staying in. Wei Mengying had made her attitude clear, so Song Yixiao could only obey.

  But then thought: "Get some free time to go to Yuan sister's place for a trip, ask her to help pass a message to Jiang sister and try!"

  If Yuan Xueyao's words are ineffective, "wait until I get familiar with Si Kong Yiruo and Xie Yiren, maybe I can also ask them to help me talk about it."

  But then her plan fell through, no matter who went to Jiang Muqin's side or what excuse they used, the response was always the same: "My young lady has been unwell for some time and cannot receive guests or worry about things! My master and mistress are worried sick, and have already given orders that everything must wait until my lady recovers. You see...".

  One by one they return with their feathers ruffled.

  Things have come to this, Song Yi Xiao still doesn't give up and thinks of Wei Yinlian again. She is a childhood friend of Jiang Muqin's, it's not possible to shut her out as well, right?

  But Lady Wei's condition did not improve, and by the day of Si Kong Yi Luo's birthday, Wei Yinlian failed to arrive as promised, so naturally they couldn't discuss anything.

  When the old lady of the Wei family finally recovered, it was already hot outside. Emperor Xianjing accompanied Empress Dowager to move to Cuihua Mountain to avoid the heat, and both the Hengshan Wangfu and the Wei family were among those who followed. Everyone from top to bottom was busy, making it really not suitable for disturbance.

  "Let's go visit Wei Jie on the mountain later!" Song Yi smiled as she thought of this, and naturally had to postpone her plan to ask for Wei Yin's help.

  However, upon arriving at Cuihua Mountain, it was also impossible to immediately go find Wei Yinlian.

  After all, rushing along the way, people have to catch their breath; large and small luggage has to be put away for two or three days; This year, Song Yixiao was affected by her fiancé's light, and she moved from a corner of previous years to a spacious courtyard next to Lu Ke'er, and she had to get familiar with the environment.

  Finally got everything settled, Wei Mengying handed over Lu Guanyun again - no choice, she was already visibly pregnant and the morning sickness was quite severe. The people taking care of Lu Guanyun were not yet assembled, so this one son could only be entrusted to his own biological daughter to put her mind at ease.

  Song Yi couldn't ignore her own brother, and Lu Guanyun was a persistent one. Originally, she only had a nodding acquaintance with Wei Yinlian, so visiting alone was already somewhat presumptuous; bringing her brother along would be even more unseemly. But if she didn't bring him, Lu Guanyun would definitely throw a tantrum - all she could do was sigh and think that Jiang Muxian had misunderstood her for not just one or two days, now she was busy with other things, maybe wait till there's another chance to talk about it.

  She can't go out of this place, fortunately, Si Kong Yi Luo and the others haven't forgotten her, they will send some things over every now and then.

  Half a month later, Xie Yiren personally visited her again, saying that she hadn't seen her for a long time and came to see her.

  Song Yixiao warmly welcomed them, and after some persuasion, she coaxed Lu Guanyun and the little maid to go play in the courtyard, finally getting a bit of quiet time. She invited Xie Yiren to have tea and snacks together: "My mother is tired these days, my brother is mischievous and loves to stick around people, I really can't get away from them. These days I haven't been able to socialize with you all, just thinking about it, and then you came!"

  "Kids at this age are all like that." Xie Yiren said with a smile, "I heard from my parents' letters that my little sister is also very lively, and three to five servants can't keep an eye on her!"

  She said that her younger sister was the legitimate youngest daughter born to her parents during their tenure in Qingzhou, one year younger than Lu Guanyun. Until now, the sisters have not met each other and can only learn about each other's recent situation through letters.

  Song Yi laughed and joked: "Looking at your quiet and elegant appearance, I really can't imagine the scene of your sister being mischievous!"

  On the topic of brothers and sisters, the two chatted for a while. Xie Yiren suddenly remembered something and told her: "Two days ago, I was returning from my aunt's villa on a mountain road when I ran into Miss Pei - our future sister-in-law."

  Nowadays on Mount Cuihua, either rich or noble, everyone encounters something unusual on the secluded and elegant road.

  The thing is, "I've known her for five or six years now, and later we'll be sisters-in-law too. Of course I'd go up to greet her when I see her. Normally, she's also very enthusiastic. But this time, I don't know why, she clearly saw me but walked right past without a word, not even nodding her head!"

  Song Yi Xiao was very surprised: "But isn't she feeling well?"

  "It's not very comfortable, what's the point of going to the palace?" Xie Yiren shook her head, "I think she's encountered some trouble and is so anxious that she can't even be bothered with me. The thing is, Princess Changping has always treated her like a biological daughter, do you think there's anything that would make her lose her composure to this extent?"

  She didn't realize that Pei You Rui's situation was not right, and Song Yi Xiao, who spent all day locked in the house with her brother, knew even less.

  The two of them guessed for a while, but they didn't have any leads - Pei You Rui was their future sister-in-law, but now everyone hadn't passed the door yet, and usually they didn't have much to do with each other. If something really happened, it would probably not implicate them either.

  So Xie Yiren was curious, but after saying it, she lost interest and turned to discuss embroidery with Song Yixiao.

  That day, Song Yixiao didn't think much about Pei Youdui after sending her off. In the following days, she found time to finish embroidering the handkerchiefs she had promised to Ci Xiangruo, and also embroidered a few more for Xie Yiren, Yuan Xueyao, Wei Yinlian, and Jiang Muxiu, and sent them over separately.

  The day after sending the embroidered handkerchief, Shi Kong Yiruo personally came to thank her and brought a piece of news that left Song Yiliao stunned: "The Princess of Jin State wants to adopt Pei You'rui as her goddaughter, so prepare your gifts in advance!"

  "Isn't she the young master's fiancée? How can she be an adopted daughter?"

  "What can be done?" Si Kong Yiruo sneered, "A few days ago, Princess Changxing took people out for a walk and got lost in the mountains. She didn't return until the next day, but it was Jian Yiyou who sent her back. I don't dare to ask about the inside story, but I know that to protect Princess Changxing's reputation, Pei Youxuan had to cancel the engagement with Jian Yiyou! Pei Youxuan did nothing wrong and suffered such a loss. The princess should also be appeased!"

  Jian Yi was the eldest son of Jin State's Princess Chang and her husband, Jian Zuo. He was also the elder brother of Jian Xu Bai.

  Song Yi Xiao didn't expect this turn of events and was stunned for a while before asking: "Did the Empress say anything?"

  Not to mention that Princess Changxing likes Jian Yu Bai, let's just say that although Jian Yi You is the eldest son of Princess Changxing and General Jian, the title of the Jian family was passed down to Jian Yu Bai. In other words, Jian Yi You is just an ordinary noble son, and he also has a marriage contract with Pei You Rui!

  Changxing Princess lowered herself to him, and at the very least, she had to bear the reputation of "stealing someone's husband". Not to mention that before marriage, she spent a night alone with her cousin outside - this was also not worth mentioning. With Empress Su's cleverness, no matter how you think about it, she should have thoroughly covered up this incident as if it never happened. How could she not only expose it but also acknowledge Jian Yiyou as the imperial son-in-law?

  Isn't it that the Princess of Jin State is backing her son? But when it comes to a matter that affects her daughter's whole life, how can the Empress possibly give in?

  "I don't dare to ask about the inside story, how would I know?" Shi Kong Yiruo heard this and slightly shook her head, "You shouldn't ask either, we all have to pretend to be ignorant about this matter."

  Song Yi smiled and sent her off after forcing a cheerful expression. She then asked Zhao's mother to take care of Lu Guanyun, and hurriedly went to the Wei family's house to pay respects.

  Fortunately, Wei Mengying was in good spirits that day. After Song Yixiao finished asking about her well-being, she told her the whole story and asked for her advice.

  "What's the big deal?" Wei Mengying listened and didn't care, "She became your sister-in-law, that would also mean another Longxing Princess Mansion, can't she just move into the Yanguo Princess Mansion instead?"

  "Hmph, that's why I said you should coax your husband well! As long as Jian Yu is on your side, Princess Changxing dares not to bother you, and he will take care of it for you! At that time, just watch how that golden branch jade leaf cries!"

  Song Yi smiled and thought for a moment, but still felt that something was off: "Mother, what is Princess Changxing doing? The Empress Dowager and the Queen are actually letting her make such a fuss?"

  "My daughter only knew about this after you told her, now you ask me how would I know?" Wei Mengying pinched the center of her brow, seemingly deep in thought. "However, originally Pei You Rui and Jian Yi Rou's wedding was scheduled for August, while you and Jian Yu Bai are set for September - now with this commotion, the princess's dowry can't be prepared in just a short amount of time. With the order of seniority, who knows, this might delay your marriage!"

  It doesn't matter to Wei Mengying if her daughter leaves a few days later.

  She was worried that Jiang Muxun and Pei Yougui were both powerful people with strong backing, the latter being a gift from the Empress Dowager, and had even been robbed of her husband, her own future son-in-law. Would he also be snatched away due to the delay in their wedding?

  Wei Mengying was worried and thought of several plans, but she didn't dare to take action for fear of provoking the imperial family once they were exposed.

  But it was probably Song Yi's good fortune that was deep and profound — just when Wei Mengying was entangled in a thousand knots, the rumor that Princess Changxing had snatched away the husband of the Pei family's young lady suddenly spread like wildfire on Mount Cuihua!

  Moreover, after the summer retreat ended and the imperial carriage escorted Empress Dowager back to the palace, it was astonishingly discovered that not only did the Emperor know about this matter, but it had already become a sensational rumor throughout the city!

  In this case, the royal family naturally had to take measures.

  "It's better to guard against the people's mouths than to guard against a river." The empress dowager's face turned iron-green, "Now even Jingdi knows about this matter, it can't be blocked, using thunderous methods will only further damage the royal reputation!"

  "So most people are just talking about this matter in order to join the excitement. In that case, let's give them a different kind of excitement to watch!"

  Xian Jia Emperor personally poured a cup of tea for Empress Dowager and respectfully said: "Please instruct me, Mother!"

  "Isn't Ah Yu's wedding next month?" The Empress Dowager sipped her tea, speaking slowly and calmly, "Have Jian Pingyu write a letter to be sent to the Imperial Capital, saying that he is bedridden at home, and let Ah Yu get married on time. Just say it's to bring good luck to his grandfather - hold a grand wedding for him. Don't worry that the people in the Imperial Capital won't care; when the time comes, those who are watching Changxing will naturally decrease."

  "Wouldn't someone suspect that Jianping Yu was driven to illness by the Longxing affair?" Emperor Xian Jia was actually also very dissatisfied with his daughter's actions, but after all, she was his own flesh and blood, and he couldn't help but hesitate upon hearing her words.

  "It was originally her doing, what's wrong with listening to a few gossiping words?!" The empress dowager put down the tea cup and sneered coldly. "It's rather Ah Ru who provoked whom? First, he was framed and suffered for more than five years in Wu Huan, and when he finally returned, his fiancée was snatched away from him... Now, I'm just worried that Ah Ru is living alone in the vast Yan Guo Gong Fu, without even a single person to share his joys and sorrows with. Do you have any opinions on this?!"

  Xian Jia Emperor had always been filial, and hearing that Empress Dowager was about to get really angry, he didn't dare to disobey, so he hastily said: "Everything will be done according to your wishes, Mother!"